Europlanet has opened a call for funding proposals of up to 5000 € to support the activities of its members. Proposals should be submitted by the Chair (or designated representative) of a Europlanet Regional Hub, Committee or Working Group (WG).
The deadline for the call is 16 March 2026. Projects proposed in the current call should be completed by the end of 2026.
Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025) Press Release
A swarm of spherical rovers, blown by the wind like tumbleweeds, could enable large-scale and low-cost exploration of the martian surface, according to results presented at the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division for Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS) 2025.
Recent experiments in a state-of-the-art wind tunnel and field tests in a quarry demonstrate that the rovers could be set in motion and navigate over various terrains in conditions analogous to those found on Mars.
Tumbleweed rovers are lightweight, 5-metre-diameter spherical robots designed to harness the power of martian winds for mobility. Swarms of the rovers could spread across the Red Planet, autonomously gathering environmental data and providing an unprecedented, simultaneous view of atmospheric and surface processes from different locations on Mars. A final, stationary phase would involve collapsing the rovers into permanent measurement stations dotted around the surface of Mars, providing long-term scientific measurements and potential infrastructure for future missions.
“Recent wind-tunnel and field campaigns have been a turning point in the Tumbleweed rover’s development,” said James Kingsnorth, Head of Science at Team Tumbleweed, who presented the results at EPSC-DPS2025 in Helsinki. “We now have experimental validation that Tumbleweed rovers could indeed operate and collect scientific data on Mars.”
In July 2025, Team Tumbleweed conducted a week-long experimental campaign, supported by Europlanet, at Aarhus University’s Planetary Environment Facility. Using scaled prototypes with 30-, 40- and 50-centimetre diameters, the team carried out static and dynamic tests in a wind tunnel with a variety of wind speeds and ground surfaces under a low atmospheric pressure of 17 millibars.
Results showed that wind speeds of 9-10 metres per second were sufficient to set the rover in motion over a range of Mars-like terrains including smooth and rough surfaces, sand, pebbles and boulder fields. Onboard instruments successfully recorded data during tumbling and the rover’s behaviour matched fluid-dynamics modelling, validating simulations. The scale-model prototypes were able to climb up a slope of 11.5 degrees in the chamber – equivalent to approximately 30 degrees on Mars – demonstrating that the rover could traverse even unfavourable slopes.
“Experiments with the prototypes in the Aarhus Wind Tunnel have provided big insights into how Tumbleweed rovers would operate on Mars,” said Mário João Carvalho de Pinto Balsemão, Team Tumbleweed’s Mission Scientist, who led the experimental campaign. “The results are conservative, as the weights of the scaled prototypes used in the experiments are exaggerated compared to the real thing, so the threshold wind speeds for setting the rovers rolling could be even less.”
Near-surface winds on Mars are currently not well understood due to the relatively sparse data collection. While data from rovers and landers on the surface show average wind speeds are generally in single digits, wind-generated vibrations recorded by NASA’s Insight mission over more than two martian years, as well as measurements gathered during the flights of the Ingenuity helicopter, show that higher wind speeds can occur near the surface quite frequently.
“Data from Insight suggests that in Mars’s northern hemisphere during summer, daytime wind speeds are characterised by a wide distribution and are positively skewed toward higher wind speeds of around 10 metres per second, and while the nights are calmer, speeds of more 10 metres per second can sometimes be reached,” said Balsemão. “The results from Aarhus support our modelling, which shows that an average Tumbleweed rover – following the daily shifts and day-night cycles of the wind – could travel about 422 kilometres over 100 martian sols, with an average overall speed of about 0.36 kilometres per hour. In favourable conditions, the maximum range could be as much as 2,800 kilometres.”
Back in April, a 2.7-metre-diameter rover prototype, the Tumbleweed Science Testbed, was deployed in field tests in an inactive quarry in Maastricht in the Netherlands. The rover’s modular payload bay carried a suite of off-the-shelf sensors including a camera, a magnetometer, an inertial measurement unit and a GPS. These experiments confirmed that the platform could successfully gather and process environmental data in real time while tumbling over natural terrain.
The organisation behind the rovers, Team Tumbleweed, is an interdisciplinary group of young, entrepreneurial scientists. With main branches in Vienna in Austria and Delft in the Netherlands, Team Tumbleweed brings together people from over 20 countries.
The next steps for the team will include integrating more sophisticated instruments into the Tumbleweed Science Testbed payload, including radiation sensors, soil probes and dust sensors, refining the rover’s dynamics models, and scaling up the platform to higher technology readiness levels (TRLs). A further field campaign will take place in the Atacama Desert, Chile, in November, during which at least two Science Testbed rovers will carry instruments supplied by researchers from external partner organisations and will test swarm coordination strategies in Mars-like environments.
Abstract: EPSC-DPS2025-1775. Preliminary Feasibility Assessment of the Tumbleweed Rover Platform and Mission using the AU Planetary Environment Facility
James Kingsnorth, Mário de Pinto Balsemão, Abhimanyu Shanbhag, Luka Pikulić, Jonathan Merrison, Jens Iversen, Cristina Moisuc, Morgan Peterson, and Julian Rothenbuchner.
https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc-dps2025-1775
Abstract: EPSC-DPS2025-1779. A Swarm of Wind-Driven Tumbleweed Rovers for in-situ Mapping of Radiation, Water‑Equivalent Hydrogen and Magnetic Fields on Mars
James Kingsnorth, Mário de Pinto Balsemão, Abhimanyu Shanbhag, Luka Pikulić, Cristina Moisuc, Morgan Peterson, Gergana Bounova, and Julian Rothenbuchner.
https://doi.org/10.5194/epsc-dps2025-1779
https://www.teamtumbleweed.eu/mars
Article on Team Tumbleweed in the Europlanet Magazine: https://www.europlanet.org/europlanet-magazine/issue-8/tumbleweed-rovers-a-new-paradigm-of-martian-exploration/
https://www.europlanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/20250424_VK_tumbleweed_SasSchilten_08.jpg
https://www.europlanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/20250424_VK_tumbleweed_SasSchilten_12.jpg
https://www.europlanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/20250424_VK_tumbleweed_SasSchilten_13.jpg
Videos can be downloaded from this link until 25 October.
Wind tunnel tests of a 40cm diameter scale Tumbleweed rover across a sandy surface. Credit: Team Tumbleweed/Aarhus University.
40cm_sand.mp4
Wind tunnel tests of a 40cm diameter scale Tumbleweed rover across a boulder-strewn surface. Credit: Team Tumbleweed/Aarhus University
40cm_boulder.mp4
Wind tunnel tests of a 30cm diameter scale Tumbleweed rover across a course surface. Credit: Team Tumbleweed/Aarhus University
30cm_coarse.mp4
Field tests with the Tumbleweed Science Testbed in a quarry in Maastricht in April 2025. Credit: Team Tumbleweed/Sas Schilten.
20250424_VK_tumbleweed_SasSchilten.mp4
James Kingsnorth
Team Tumbleweed
Delft, Netherlands
james@teamtumbleweed.eu
Mário de Pinto Balsemão
Mission Scientist for Human Exploration
mario@teamtumbleweed.eu
EPSC-DPS2025 Press Office
press@europlanet.org
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year marked the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend. With over 1800 participants joining in person and online, EPSC-DPS2025 is the largest planetary science meeting held to date in Europe. https://www.epsc-dps2025.eu
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Science (EPSC-DPS2025) Press Release.
Europlanet has announced the winners of its inaugural Career Medals, which are designed to honour outstanding contributions from planetary scientists at three stages of their careers.
Dr Tim Lichtenberg is awarded the Europlanet Early-Career Medal in recognition of an interdisciplinary approach that has led to significant advances in the understanding of planetary formation and exoplanet evolution. Lichtenberg’s work has shed light on the influence of radioactive elements on early planetary heating, the distribution of water and other volatile materials in planetary systems, and how planets evolve to become habitable.
Dr Benoit Carry is awarded the Europlanet Mid-Career Medal for his work to characterise the internal structures and compositions of asteroids and planetary small bodies. Carry’s research has given critical insights into the evolution of the early Solar System, as well as making an important contribution to planetary defence efforts and to open science.
Prof Jean Schneider is awarded the Europlanet Lifetime Achievement Medal for his role as one of the ‘architects’ of modern planetary sciences. In addition to pioneering key methodologies for detecting and characterising exoplanets, including transit photometry and transmission spectroscopy, Schneider founded the Encyclopaedia of Exoplanetary Systems, which for thirty years has been a cornerstone resource for the international community.
Noah Jäggi, Chair of the Medal Award Committee said, ‘With this first set of Europlanet Career Medals, we are delighted to be able to recognise the contributions of three individuals who have had such a profound impact, not just on planetary science, but on our whole community. The achievements of our inaugural medallists demonstrate that, at each stage of a career, scientists can make a substantial difference to the field in which they work and to the colleagues that work alongside them. We are proud to honour these truly deserving recipients.’
The awards will be presented next week at the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC) and the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) 2025, which will take place at Finlandia Hall, Helsinki, Finland, from 7-12 September.
Europlanet Early-Career Medal Winner, Tim Lichtenberg
Tim Lichtenberg works as Assistant Professor at the Kapteyn Astronomical Institute of the University of Groningen, where he leads the Forming Worlds Lab. His research bridges geochemistry, geophysics, climate science and exoplanet astronomy, and explores how factors like magma ocean longevity, the balance between oxidation and reduction processes, and core-mantle segregation can influence exoplanetary atmospheres and give insights into planetary evolution and habitability.
Lichtenberg proposed that the presence of aluminium-26 (26Al) during planet formation can heat and dry out embryonic planets. This theory could explain why planetary systems like our Solar System form largely dry terrestrial planets, contrasting with those in which Earth-mass exoplanets become water-rich ocean worlds. These theoretical insights have since been supported by observations of protoplanetary disks, analysis of stellar remnants that have been polluted by planetary debris, as well as evidence from meteorites formed very early in the Solar System’s history. These findings directly impact our understanding of the origin and distribution of long-lived atmospheres on terrestrial exoplanets.
Beyond his scientific achievements, Lichtenberg has shown leadership in community-building, promoting inclusive and team-spirited work environments and open science. He plays key roles in major international initiatives, including the Large Interferometer for Exoplanets (LIFE) project, several James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) programmes, and the interdisciplinary Rocky Worlds meeting series.
Europlanet Early-Career Medal citation: https://www.europlanet.org/europlanet-early-career-medal/
Forming Worlds Lab webpage: https://www.formingworlds.space
An interview with Tim Lichtenberg is included in Issue 8 of the Europlanet Magazine (Quickfire Questions with Tim Lichtenberg), with an extended version online (Exoplanets and Planetary Science: Two Different Worlds?).
Europlanet Mid-Career Medal Winner, Benoit Carry
Benoit Carry, of the Lagrange laboratory of the Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur (OCA), uses observational and theoretical approaches for understanding the distribution and the compositional diversity of small bodies in planetary systems. His work in interpreting data from major space missions, such as Gaia and Euclid, has been pivotal in advancing our understanding of the formation of the asteroid belt and the evolution of the Solar System.
Carry’s research has enabled more precise asteroid mass determinations, revealing key properties of asteroid interiors and substantially improving the accuracy of threat assessments for potentially hazardous asteroids. His collaborative work on compositional mapping of the asteroid belt has shaped current models of planetary migration and asteroid distribution. As co-chair of the ESA HERA mission’s Working Group on ground-based observations of Didymos, the target of the NASA DART and ESA HERA missions, he has taken a leading role in planning and interpreting asteroid deflection observations that will be vital for future planetary defence efforts.
Alongside the scientific impact of his work, Carry is committed to open science and has developed critical infrastructure for the planetary science community, including tools that enable the real-time classification of astronomical alerts and services that provide comprehensive data on over a million asteroids and dwarf planets.
The Europlanet Mid-Career Medal continues to honour the memory and legacy of the Italian scientist, Paolo Farinella (1953-2000), in whose name the Farinella Prize was awarded from 2011-2024.
Europlanet Mid-Career Medal citation: https://www.europlanet.org/europlanet-mid-career-medal/
Benoit Carry’s webpage: http://benoit.carry.free.fr
Europlanet Lifetime Achievement Winner, Jean Schnieder
Jean Schneider is Emeritus Researcher at the Observatoire de Paris-Meudon. Nearly a decade before the first observation of an exoplanet, Schneider laid the theoretical groundwork for identifying exoplanets through transit photometry. Missions such as CoRoT, Kepler, and TESS have all built on these foundations, leading to the detection of thousands of new worlds, including CoRoT-7b, the first super-Earth with a measured radius.
In 1994, Schneider published the first work proposing transmission spectroscopy, a method of detecting the molecular fingerprints of gases on extrasolar planets by analysing light filtered through the atmospheres of planets passing in front of their host stars. This technique, used on JWST and Hubble data and underpinning the upcoming ESA Ariel mission, has characterised the atmospheres of around 100 exoplanets to date and may help ultimately to answer the question of whether planets other than Earth might harbour life. Schneider also pioneered methodologies for detecting planets around binary stars and exomoons, pushing the frontiers of what could potentially be observed.
Several months before the discovery of 51 Pegasi b in 1995, Schneider created the Encyclopaedia of Exoplanetary Systems, which today includes comprehensive information on over 7,600 planets orbiting other stars and is a unique resource for research, teaching and public outreach around the world.
Throughout his career, Professor Schneider has shown a commitment to building the international collaborations and institutional frameworks required to support the advancement of planetary sciences, serving in many leadership roles for actions, working groups and steering committees at CNRS, ESO and the IAU.
Europlanet Lifetime Achievement Medal citation: https://www.europlanet.org/europlanet-lifetime-achievement-medal/
The Europlanet Medals, launched in 2025, honour outstanding contributions to scientific excellence, community building, and outreach from individuals at three different stages of their scientific careers, covering the subjects addressed by the Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC):
The categories are based on the scientific age of a researcher at time of nomination, which is calculated from the year of the last degree in scientific education (MSc, PhD) without counting parental leave, health leave, or time working primarily outside science. Each of the inaugural Europlanet Medal winners receives a plaque and a registration waiver for the EPSC-DPS 2025 Joint Meeting in Helsinki, where they will give a medal lecture.
Tim Lichtenberg. Credit: T Lichtenberg/U. Groningen.
https://www.europlanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/ECM_Lichtenberg.webp
Tim Lichtenberg. Credit: T Lichtenberg/U. Groningen.
https://www.europlanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Award_page.webp
Benoit Carry. Credit: E Hernandez/Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur
https://www.europlanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/MCM25_Carry.webp
Benoit Carry. Credit: E Hernandez/Observatoire de la Cote d’Azur
https://www.europlanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Award_page-1.webp
Jean Schneider. Credit: J Schneider.
Credit: https://www.europlanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Main_page.webp
Contacts
EPSC-DPS2025 Press Office
press@europlanet.org
+44 7756 034243
Notes for Editors
About the Joint Meeting of the Europlanet Science Congress and the Division of Planetary Sciences (EPSC-DPS)
The Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC), established in 2006 as the European Planetary Science Congress, is the largest planetary science meeting in Europe. It covers the entire range of planetary sciences, with an extensive mix of talks, workshops and poster sessions, as well as providing a unique space for networking and exchanges of experiences.
EPSC joined forces for the first time with the American Astronomical Society’s Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) for a joint meeting in Nantes, France, in 2011. This was followed by DPS-EPSC 2016 in Pasadena, EPSC-DPS 2019 in Geneva, and the return to the United States for the DPS-EPSC 2023 meeting in San Antonio. This year will mark the third iteration of a joint European-based meeting. The intent of the joint meetings is not only to connect the European and North American planetary science communities, but also to consolidate two major meetings and motivate planetary scientists from all over the globe to attend.
Follow on social media (Bluesky, X and LinkedIn) with the hashtag #EPSC-DPS2025 for updates on the meeting.
About Europlanet
Europlanet (europlanet.org) is a non-profit association and membership organisation that provides the planetary science community with access to research infrastructure, services and training. The Europlanet Association Sans But Lucratif (AISBL), established in 2023, builds on the heritage of a series of projects funded by the European Commission between 2005 and 2024 (Grant Numbers 871149, 654208, 228319 and RICA-CT-2004-001637) to support the planetary science community in Europe and around the world.
About the DPS
The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS), founded in 1968, is the largest special-interest Division of the American Astronomical Society (AAS). Members of the DPS study the bodies of our own solar system, from planets and moons to comets and asteroids, and all other solar-system objects and processes. With the discovery that planets exist around other stars, the DPS has expanded its scope to include the study of extrasolar planetary systems as well. The American Astronomical Society (AAS), established in 1899, is the major organization of professional astronomers in North America. The mission of the AAS is to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community, which it achieves through publishing, meeting organization, science advocacy, education and outreach, and training and professional development.
Be part of an exciting initiative in collaboration with Wikimedia Belgium to celebrate diversity in planetary science.
Europlanet and the Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB) are organising a Wiki 2025 Edit-a-thon. The project is supported by the Ernest Solvay Fund, managed by the King Baudouin Foundation.
We’re offering a Wikipedia course designed to teach you how to create and edit biographies of inspiring women and underrepresented groups in planetary science. After the course, take part in a collaborative Wiki Edit-a-thon to put your new skills to work.
Our goal is to celebrate and promote diversity within the international planetary science community by highlighting the contributions of women and under-represented groups.
The Planetary Science Wiki Edit-a-thon is implemented in five phases:
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to make an impact and be part of this important initiative!
Register now to secure your spot (only 20 places available)
Please note: By registering, we kindly ask that you commit to fully participating throughout the event to ensure the success of this important initiative.
For any questions, contact: arianna.piccialli@aeronomie.be
Project carried out with the support of the Ernest Solvay Fund, managed by the King Baudouin Foundation.
Space Industry Leaders, Policy Makers, and Enthusiasts,
We are thrilled to extend an invitation to the 16th European Space Conference, the premier event in the space industry calendar. Scheduled for 23-24 January 2024, this pivotal conference will be held at the SQUARE Brussels, with an option to participate online for those unable to join us in person.
Dynamic Programme of the Conference – 23 January 2024:
The first day of the conference promises a rich tapestry of sessions, keynotes, and dialogues, meticulously designed to catalyze progress in European space policy and industry.
This year’s European Space Conference is not just a gathering; it’s a crucible where ideas meet innovation, and policy meets practice. Your presence will contribute significantly to shaping the European space policy landscape for years to come.
Registration and Additional Information:
For more details on the event, registration, speakers, and accommodations, please visit the website.
The 16th European Space Conference will take place in Brussels, on 23-24 of january, 2024.
The conference will comprise several main sessions, punctuated by keynote addresses and one-to-one dialogues.
The focus will be placed on space economic security, autonomous access to space, the future of space connectivity, space commercialisation, the upcoming EU Space Law, the benefits of space services and applications supporting the Green Deal and SDGs.
In light of the unprecedented geopolitical context that Europe is facing, we will also debate the synergies between space and defence and the different ways forward for cooperation in the space domain with Europe’s partners across the world.
Specific sessions dedicated to targeted themes will host key personalities from the European space domain, including high-level representatives from EU institutions, Member States, the European Space Agency, national space agencies and the European industry.
To see the full programm and get your ticket, please follow the link.
This Saturday afternoon, 12 women scientists in Belgium will be bringing their science to the public during the Soapbox Science Brussels event.
Soapbox Science is a science outreach initiative that aims to promote the visibility of women and non-binary scientists and their research by bringing them on the streets to reach the public. Soapbox Science events transform public areas in discussion forums based on Hyde Park’s Speaker’s Corner where scientists, on their soapboxes, talk about their research to the people passing by.
Details: Saturday, 24 June 2023, from 2-5 pm, at the Carrefour de l’Europe/Europakruispunt, in front of the Central Station.
On 24 January 2023, Europlanet and Niklas Nienass, MEP, co-hosted a Dinner Debate in the European Parliament. The theme of the debate was “Promoting the importance of space policies and a European Space Strategy”.
The evening started with an introduction by Mr Nienass and a video message from the Europlanet 2024 RI Coordinator and President of the Europlanet Society, Nigel Mason, who was unable to attend in person. Over dinner, a number of invited participants gave short keynote speeches, and this was followed by an open debate.
Welcome:
Niklas Nienass, MEP, co-host
Nigel Mason/Barbara Cavalazzi, Europlanet, co-host
Short keynote note speeches
Marian-Jean Marinescu, MEP
Rodrigo da Costa, Head of EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA)
Josef Aschbacher, Director of European Space Agency (ESA)
Kai-Uwe Schrogl, President of the International Institute of Space Law (IISL)
Christoph Kutz, Head of DG DEFIS
Ann-Carine Vandaele, Vice President of Europlanet Society Executive Board
Charles Galland, Policy Manager, ASD-Eurospace
Debate (moderated by Niklas Nienass)
Details of the Dinner Debate: “Promoting the importance of space policies and a European Space Strategy”.
Europe’s capacities in the space sector are continuously growing; we have world-leading programmes covering all areas of space activities and the largest international community of planetary scientists. The importance of space endeavors slowly comes to overall public awareness and this is mirrored in increased private interest as well as governmental spending. As Europe, we have enormous potential going forward but currently, we are lacking a common policy framework, legislative basis and overall strategy. We need to keep building the coherent, well-networked and collaborative community we have and fully exploit the resources at our disposal. Europe is taking a leading role in challenging missions aiming at changing the space sector.
This high-level event should bring decision-makers, academics and researchers together to discuss the importance of a European Space Strategy, status quo and common visions to go forward.
MEP Niklas Nienass is Member of the European Parliament for The Greens/EFA, where he is responsible for space policy. A strong supporter of the European new space economy, he is committed to establish a European space legislation and set international standards for space traffic management. He has a seat in the European Parliament’s Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE), where he negotiates space related legislative files on behalf of the Greens/EFA group. In 2020 he graduated with a Master’s degree in Good Governance with a thesis on international space law.
The Europlanet 2024 Research Infrastructure (Europlanet 2024 RI) is the culmination of a series of projects funded by successive European Union Framework Programmes (FP6 and FP7) to build a research infrastructure integrating planetary science across the European Research Area. Europlanet 2024 RI delivers access to virtual services and transnational access to the world’s largest collection of planetary simulation and analysis facilities. Europlanet is equally well placed within the Horizon Europe strategic objectives, focusing on industrial applications, development of digital technologies, EO services, AI and machine learning. The Europlanet Society, launched in 2018, is structured around 10 Regional Hubs and it aims to build sustainable capacity and cascade expertise in stakeholder engagement through the European planetary community. Europlanet focuses on evidence-based policy, informing policy makers on the scientific, industrial and socio-economic impacts of planetary science, at European and national level. They are also engaging with the planetary science community raising awareness and encouraging its engagement with policy makers and industry across Europe, in particular with SMEs.
Ann Carine Vandaele, Head of Planetary Atmospheres Research Unit at the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy, Brussels, was announced as the President-Elect of the Europlanet Society during the General Assembly on 22 September. Ann Carine will take over as the second President of the Europlanet Society in September 2023 when Nigel Mason‘s term of office comes to an end.
In her election Manifesto, Ann Carine explained her vision for the Europlanet Society:
After a PhD at the Université Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium, I joined the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy where, today, I am head of the Planetary Atmospheres Division. My main scientific expertise lies in the development of remote sensing instruments, spectroscopy used by such instruments, and radiative transfer modelling through atmospheres. I am involved in several space missions (Mars and Venus Express, ExoMars TGO, JUICE, ARIEL, EnVision) and associations (the International Commission of Planetary Atmospheres and Evolution, a commission of IAMAS/IUGG; the IUGG Belgian National Committee of Geodesy and Geophysics; the Belgian National Committee on Space Research, YouSpace! ). I am the president of the Société Royale Belge d’Astronomie, de Météorologie et de Physique du Globe, whose members are academics, researchers but also amateur astronomers. I am currently the chair of the Benelux regional Hub of the Europlanet Society.
My main driver is to promote collaboration and exchange between researchers in Planetary Sciences. For me, it is important to encourage relations between education, research and industry to increase the visibility and the impact of planetary science. The Europlanet Society has the potential to be that link. I believe that the Society needs to be present at all the stages of a researcher’s life, from the very beginning, i.e. at schools and university. It is fundamental to engage a wide variety of audiences and sectors of the society not usually interested in or even excluded from science, offering to the wider general public the possibility to take part in planetary sciences. The Society should also be an active interlocutor by engaging with decision makers, like the European Space Agency or the European Commission.
Find out more about the role of the President and the Executive Board of the Europlanet Society.
Let us show you how the Europlanet Society and its regional hubs can serve you. We will present you the benefits of joining the hubs and will gladly hear about your needs.
12:45 Welcome (Séverine Robert)
12:50 Why am I a member of the EPS? (Miguel Lopez Valverde)
12:55 Funded project: Mars Atlas (Henrik Hargitai)
13:05 Why am I a member of the EPS? (Jonathan Merrison)
13:10 Funded project: Storytelling workshop (Arianna Piccialli)
13:20 Why am I a member of the EPS? (Nicholas Achilleos)
13:25 Collaborative framework: Europlanet Telescope Network (Manuel Scherf)
13:35 Why am I a member of the EPS? (Lena Noack)
13:40 General discussion: What do you want the EPS to do for you? (All Panelists)
14:10 Wrap up (Séverine Robert)
14:15 End of meeting
Share: https://meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EPSC2021/session/41824
—
The Europlanet Society Regional Hubs support the development of planetary science at a national and regional level, particularly in countries and areas that are currently under-represented within the community.
Our Hub Committees organise networking events and workshops to support the research community, as well as to build links with amateur astronomers, industrial partners, policymakers, educators, the media and the wider public. Europlanet Society members are welcome to participate in the activities of one or more Hubs.
The Europlanet Society’s Committee Funding Scheme provides awards of €1000-5000 to supports projects that further the aims of the Europlanet Society and actively involve its members. In 2020, the Society supported an application by the Benelux Hub for a project called ‘Planetary Atmospheres Accessible to All’ that would enable researchers to collaborate with performers and storytellers in producing unique augmented lectures that use performing arts techniques to engage public audiences.
This online workshop, aimed at 10 selected BIRA / IASB / Europlanet researchers, has provided the practical tools to become storytellers of science with a special emphasis on addressing a general audience and/or students.
The workshop was divided into three half-day sessions (11, 14, 18 December 2020, 09:00 → 13:00 ).
The first half-day focused on defining and prioritizing the key themes which help to communicate Aeronomy to target audiences, by connecting them to societal issues. A process of collective intelligence and design thinking has been used to facilitate the emergence of key themes that can be integrated in the Augmented Lectures, if they will be produced.
Based on the outcomes, the second session has provided training in the creation of a science outreach story and its delivery (storytelling). We focused on and applied the fundamental ingredients of stories (starting from a simplified Hero’s Journey). Each participant has had the chance to prepare one short story on his/her topic of interest.
During the third half-day session, these stories have been presented to invited artists, and possible collaborations have been explored between art-science pairs to cocreate Augmented Lectures to further enhance the project.
Organisers: Dr Andrea Brunello (JPT), Dr Ann Carine Vandaele (BIRA-IASB), Dr Arianna Piccialli (BIRA-IASB), Karolien Lefever (Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy), Dr Pierre Echard (JPT)
Europlanet 2024 RI has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 871149.
Europlanet AISBL (Association Internationale Sans But Lucratif – 0800.634.634) is hosted by the Department of Planetary Atmospheres of the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Avenue Circulaire 3, B-1180 Brussels, Belgium.
